Saturday, December 18, 2010

At the moment I have several higher priority things to deal with, but in a vague way I do intend to get around to making some 1670-80s clothes (so I can hang out with pirates at Pioneer Village). Unfortunately, this is neither my time period of expertise nor one that appeals to me that much, and I was having a difficult time finding examples of things I like. But that was before I discovered Jacob Ochtervelt. Check out these cool paintings.

The Music Lesson, 1671Buying Grapes, 1669The Love Letter, early 1670sFamily Portrait, 1670-75De Speellieden, 1682Lady with Servant and Dog, 1671-73A Musical Company, 1670The Backgammon Players, 1667-69The Lemon SliceAn interior with two elegant ladies making their toilet together with a maid making the bed and a dog on a chairThe Drawing Lesson

Wednesday, December 15, 2010

These are 1880s bustles. As you can see, they have a similar pattern. There are the dull hoop-type bustles, the mummy-bustles, and the narrow bustles just in the back in casings. The interesting part is that there are also some stranger and more fascinating short bustles. I know it is a lot of pictures to scroll through, but make sure you get that far because they are cool.

Plain hoops.Mummy-style bustleCasings, all the bustle in the back.Short bustles! I adore them.

Tuesday, December 14, 2010

I was thinking about steampunk, and I thought I would like to make a bustle. So I started researching. These are the 1870s bustles I found (tomorrow you can see the 1880s!). I have lumped them into three categories. First, the boring, like hoops but a little funny shaped, bustles. Second, there are the mummy hoops (I have included pictures from both side and front for these, so you can see what I am talking about), where there are wire supports only in the back and then a grid of tapes for support. I have made up the mummy term, but that's just what it makes me think of. Then there are the more interesting bustles, which vary and are often fabric with casings for wires or even without wires altogether. Interesting. I must further consider what I want to make for myself. If nothing else, I'm enjoying seeing the variation.

About Me

Antonia is a 19th century girl who teaches vintage dance, sews reproduction clothing, collects beautiful things, and generally has adventures. Expect to hear her talk about clothing, dancing, silly things, history, and even more clothing. She likes her interests and her friends to be mildly impractical and highly romantic.